Been There
by Random Guise
Summary: At the end of the movie "Being There", Chance the gardener has become Chauncey Gardiner and is being spoken of as a candidate for President. This story saves him from that terrible fate. I don't own these characters, and I'm not a moron - just ignorant.


**A/N: Sequel to the movie "Being There" with Peter Sellers.**

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Been There

_"...update on that storm tonight at 11. Stay tuned for the next segment 'One Chauncey in a Million' after these messages."_

The bartender turned down the volume which immediately increased as sales pitches blared out the small tinny speaker. He ambled over to the older man sitting at the bar in front of the screen. "I thought you were gonna head home, doc" he told the man who sat with an empty glass in front of him.

Dr. Robert Allenby paused to consider; although he knew the story he still wanted to see how others portrayed the person for whom the coming show was about. "I think I'll stay for that segment; better set me up with one more to nurse through the show."

The bartender laughed. "Nurse...heh heh...I get it. Sure thing, doc, let me pull you one." He dispensed another glass of house brew and sat it down in front of the man. "Yell if you need anything else" he said as he turned the volume up again.

The doctor sipped some of the brew and sat back as the show started and a host came on the screen.

_"I'm Jemima Butterworth, and tonight we have the story of Chauncey Gardiner, a man whose meteoric fall from the echelons of Washington's elite was as fast as his ballistic rise. A man unknown one year ago who became a confidant of the President of the United States. A man described in turn as deep, thoughtful, humorous, insightful and direct with a maturity beyond his years."_

_"He appeared on Washington's radar nine months ago, as an economic consultant to wealthy business entrepreneur Benjamin Rand. The two men bonded instantly upon meeting, and while in declining health Rand set the wheels in motion for Gardiner to helm his Financial Business Assistance foundation. The President even quoted Mr. Gardiner during a press conference on the country's economy, and he appeared shortly afterward on Gary Burn's national television show."_

_"And yet nothing is known of his earlier life. An anonymous source has told this reported that both the FBI and CIA have accused each other of destroying information on the man, although spokespersons for each organization have denied any such activity. Even foreign countries clamor for information on the man that has no past."_

_"After the death of Benjamin Rand from complications from Lou Gehrig's disease, whispers in the corridors of Washington suggested that Mr. Gardiner might be a candidate to replace the very president that he advised; when asked, the idea of running for office seemed something Chauncey had never considered before. His close personal friend the Soviet Ambassador Vladimir Skrapinov suggested with a wink that if the man was going to run, he would let the world know when he was ready."_

_"A naturally shy man, Mr. Gardiner and his companion Eve Rand found themselves hounded by paparazzi and while fleeing a social gathering for Senator Pullman became involved in an automobile accident." The screen showed emergency vehicles and workers gathered around a crashed limousine. A dazed Eve walked alongside a stretcher that held the body of a man._

_"Mr. Gardiner was taken to emergency care, where the extent of his head injury was determined."_

_A man spoke on screen with the underlying caption 'Dr. Robert Allenby, personal physician'. "Mr. Gardiner's condition is quite serious; he has suffered head trauma from the accident and although he is stabilized only time will tell if and when he will recover anc what after-effects if any will present themselves. Thank you."_

"Hey doc, that's you!" the bartender called from across the room.

_The host returned. "Mr. Gardiner was transferred to private care in the Rand estate, but it was another month before there was any official update on his condition. At that time this reporter was allowed in to interview the man for a short session." The view switched to a hospital room where the host sat in a chair beside a bed. Chauncey Gardiner lay in the bed, a small bandage across his forehead. Doctor Allenby stood beside his bed, as did Eve Rand who held the patient's hand._

_"Mr. Gardiner can speak for a few minutes, but he tires easily and still needs his rest" the doctor advised._

_"Thank you, Dr. Allenby. Mr. Gardiner, our viewers would like to know how you are feeling."_

_"I'm feeling good. How are they feeling?"_

_Jemima laughed. "It's good to see you still have your renowned sense of humor. The president sends his best wishes."_

_"That is very kind of Bobbie. I like him." He looked up at Eve. "I've met him you know."_

_"Yes, your approval of his economic plan is well known" Jemima went on. "Do you recall anything about the accident?"_

_"Eve and I were riding in the back of the car after a party. We were trying to get home when we had an accident. I hit my head" he explained as he pointed out the bandage._

_"Do you think the car was being driven recklessly?"_

_Chauncey thought for a moment. "David is a very safe driver."_

_"I see. How long before you will take up the reins of the Financial Business Assistance foundation?"_

_"What's that?" Chauncey asked._

_"You'll have to excuse Mr. Gardiner" the doctor explained. "Due to his injuries his memory is unclear at times. He also has some cognitive difficulties."_

_"It's okay Chauncey, you'll get better" Eve said as she rubbed his hand with both of her hands._

_"Thank you, Eve; I understand."_

_"Perhaps when you recover sufficiently you'll be able to visit the president. Have you been to the White House before?" Jemima asked._

_"I...don't think so."_

_"I've brought a Get-Well card from all the people at the television station" Jemima said as she handed him a card. "Why don't you read it to the audience?"_

_Chauncey looked at the card. "I am not able to read this. But the drawing looks nice."_

_Jemima drew her breath sharply. "I'm sorry, I didn't realize the effects of the injury were so profound" she apologized. "Mr. Gardiner, is there anything you'd like to say to everyone watching tonight?"_

_Chauncey thought for a moment, looked as though he was about to say something, then smiled. "No" he answered._

_The scene switched back to the studio shot of the host. "And there you see it, a brilliant mind terribly hobbled by the effects of a traumatic injury as Chauncey Gardiner fights to recover, aided by both his personal doctor and his fiancé Eve Rand." Jemima fought back a tear as she concluded "A fighter this reporter is pulling for. This is Jemima Butterworth, goodnight."_

The TV went to commercial and the doctor stood up, looking down at an envelope in his hand. The letter inside contained all that Allenby had come to discover regarding the man known as Chauncey Gardiner. His actual name was Chance, a man of limited mental development who had lived nearly his entire life in the house of a Ronald Jennings where he worked as a gardener. When Jennings had died in his old age an attorney by the name of Thomas Franklin, whose father was friends with Jennings before the attorney was born, handled the estate and evicted Chance into the world for the first time. That very same day Chance was struck by the Rand limousine and injured slightly. He was taken to the Rand estate to be examined and to recover, and befriended Benjamin Rand and his wife Eve where he was mistakenly referred to as Chauncey Gardiner.

The rest of the story was common knowledge. Allenby had done some investigation, and eventually found out that Chance was in fact a much older brother to the attorney Thomas, whose father arranged for the care of his brother when it became quickly apparent he would not be able to care for himself. No one else knew of the arrangement, and when Thomas had evicted Chance he had no idea the gardener was in fact his sibling.

The final kicker was that while everyone else saw in Chance what they wanted to see, he never once told them a lie or misstated a fact. And his condition after the accident, except for the superficial bump on the head, was no different than before. But Allenby already knew the truth of his condition before then; what the accident had provided was a way to provide Chance with a medical alibi to cover his normal condition. This, of course, was completely believed by everyone who so easily had believed him on his way to a possible presidency. Chance, of course, wasn't aware of anything.

But Allenby liked Chance, and knew only ruin lay for him if his current path continued - so when the accident occurred he moved quickly and set up a safe place for him to land; financially set, a woman that he cared for and she for him, and a public that would see and accept him for what he was and not what they thought he was. And eventually Chance would fade from the public eye and have as normal a life as one could expect. He had been there once, he could be there again.

"Hey Joe, you got one of those paper shredders here?" Allenby asked.

"Yeah, just behind the bar there. Go ahead and shred those tax documents while you can, doc" he laughed.

"Nothing as important as that" he said as he pushed the envelope into the opening, to be rewarded by confetti coming out the other end.

The End

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**A/N: Of course, the point of the movie was that people filter perception in a manner in which they wish to see reality; it's the way we're built as humans, really. (As opposed to the movie 'Zelig' where the main character actually changed physically to blend into his surroundings.) But this movie ended with others making plans for Chance that couldn't possibly work out, and I wanted to steer him away from catastrophe and a situation that he would have found incomprehensible. Only after writing it did I consider the familial similarities to 'Rain Man'. Oops.**


End file.
